Mortmain is almost a thought of the past in the London Institute, with Tessa and Jem busy preparing for their wedding and Will's younger sister, Cecily, recently installed into the household. Then Gabriel Lightwood comes, pounding on the doors of the Institute, with the news that his father has succumbed to the deadly Demon Pox. London's supply of Yin Fen, the drug that prolongs the life of people who have contracted Demon Pox, has run out. Jem, who must also take the drug, is days away from death when the message comes that Mortmain will give the London shadow hunters all the Yin Fen that they want, if only they give him Tessa Gray. The fight comes to the Institute's own front stoop, and the Shadowhunters are forced to reevaluate everything they know, lest they too fall to the Infernal Devices.
I did not like the ending of this book. What ending do I like? There are only a few perfect endings in the world, and I'll just have to accept that conclusion. Sadly, this book is not one of the better endings, though the ending is halfway decent, I'll give it that. But I hate how everyone has to have their cake and eat it too. I won't say more than that, lest I spoil anything. Still, though. Some people have to go home unhappy at the end of the day, don't they? -- not saying any more--I wish that Tessa was more of a spunky heroine. She's more of a . . . background character, though, even if the whole book is supposed to center around her. She's more obsessed with her boys then with getting out of . . . wherever she was. A bit like in the first book, "Clockwork Angel." Come on, Tessa! I thought that we had been making progress in "Clockwork Prince!" But, noooo, Tessa Gray must be some deranged princess. She does three great acts throughout the whole books, three great acts that show she has a strong spine, and a fourth that isn't so great but, still, it's definitive. But, her strength is not apparent in her speech, and she is described as 'bookish.' Uh, I can see Tessa as so much more than that. It's a shame that her full potential isn't realized.
Jem Carstairs is a bit better. He's made his decision of how he's going to live his life, illness or not, and he sticks to that, which is admirable. He does sort of . . . I won't say anything. I've just never liked his character that much (I prefer Will). Jem was always a bit of a wallflower, until he decided that he was going to marry Tessa and then boom, now he's his own person. He hardly talked to Tessa before he decided he was going to marry her! In my opinion, at least. So, I never 'knew' him as well as I would have liked to. And I won't say anything else here, because I could rant for a good while and give away everything.
Will Herondale is the real break-out character here. Before this book, you see him as a good man in the throes of a curse that will ruin his life until his dying day. Here, Magnus has finally told him he's free of the curse and he's free to live his life as he pleases. Then Jem and Tessa lay it on him that they're getting married, oops, Will, here's your dreams, let's stick 'em to ya. In this book, he's dealing with his loyalty to both of them, as well as his loyalty to himself. His inner turmoil is fantastically done. You can feel what he's feeling with a rare acuteness, and that's a treat, even if most of what he's feeling is self-loathing.
The Lightwood brothers also become more prominent in this book, which is good in its own way, but it takes away from the drama surrounding the main three characters. The time that's spent focusing on Gideon and Gabriel is time that we are not focusing on Tessa. Also, I had trouble remembering which was the older brother (it's Gideon) because both have the same first letter in their name.
There are some happy parts where the unexpected happens. Not that that is a happy thing, because the unexpected is usually not so pretty, but it is good all of the same. Not everyone has to have a happy ending, and that's a lesson we all need to learn in life. There are also some mushy parts--namely one--which is annoying, because they're just about to fight demons and stuff. But, Magnus handles it gamely. (Magnus is, like, the most awesome person in both of the Shadowhunter series.)
The conflicts in these books are always pretty weird, though. It's all physiological until the last fifty or so pages, and then some big physical conflict happens. You know what I'm trying to say? It's almost as though the story arc has been modified to include some gigantic final battle between the two sides, while the rest of the story is entirely about the manipulation of the mind. And it has some pretty good manipulation. Cassandra Clare is, as always, very, very good at portraying human emotion in impossible situations.
One of the coolest thing about these book are the crossovers between the stories. Between the two Shadowhunter series, there are some objects and people that are the same (hint, hint, Isabelle's locket, Church the cat) and it's cool to get their origin stories. The families that participate in both dramas are the same (So, Clary, it isn't your fault--it's genetic), and you get to see what the 'Mortal Instrument' character's great-grandparents were like. If you get the hardcover book, the paper covering of the books comes off to become a family tree of the Fairchilds, Lightwoods, and Herondales spanning from the 1800s to 2008.
As mentioned, this is the third book in the 'Infernal Devicies' triology, with the first two books being 'Clockwork Angel' and 'Clockwork Prince,' respectively. I think that 'Clockwork Prince' was my favorite of the three, with 'Clockwork Angel' and 'Clockwork Princess' tied for third. And, let me tell you, the name 'Clockwork Princess' is a misnomer. Technically, it's a metaphor, referring to something Mortmain said in the second book.
Some things are a little too convenient, and other things are a little too perfect, but as always, Cassandra Clare is adept at capturing the tangled webs of human (or warlock, or Shadowhunter) emotion, making 'Clockwork Princess' a tale that's a little too good. The cast peddles in humor and misery equally, facing an inhuman army with the pure definition of humanity.
In our world, in our time, everything goes on as planned, but in the London of the 1800s, the Shadowhunters fight their final fight. THE INFERNAL DEVICES ARE WITHOUT PITY. MAY GOD HAVE MERCY ON THEIR SOULS.
The url to the Infernal Devices website is this: http://www.shadowhunters.com/theinfernaldevices/index.php
Though not as extensive as the Mortal Instruments sight, this one does have some pretty decent 'extras,' including a 'Clockwork Princess' countdown widget, which went into negative numbers 10 days, 9 hours, 48 a minutes, and 47 seconds ago. I got the picture above from the site (I can't draw that well).
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